Scott Grant

Dr Martin Kettle

Session E8

Social Services Expo March 18th 2014

Workshop on Professional Identity

Professional Identity

“There is an urgent need for social work to clarify its professional identity” (Changing Lives)

“Not easily put into a box” (Wiles, 2013)

Are we talking about the identity of the profession or of the professional ?

 

Outline • Introductions

(5 minutes)• Small group discussion (20

minutes)• Feedback

(10 minutes)

• Key findings from Doctoral research

(Martin) (5 minutes)

• Emergent findings from NQSW research

(Scott) (5 minutes)

Questions for discussion

• What are the key components of professional identity for you?

• What are the factors that helped and hindered your development of professional identity?

A Balancing Act

• Prof D Doctoral Research

• Grounded Theory study of child protection social work

Children

Power together

Relationship

Parents

Distance

Future

Inter-professional transactions

Power over

Investigation

Closeness

Past

Tipping point

“A: I suppose that it is a bit like walking along a tight rope, sometimes you are a bit wobbly, at other times you are feeling that little bit more secure ……..you are trying to do the best that you can do, and you really want to make sure that you are protecting children, and that you want to make sure that you are doing the right thing, and I think the hard part is where you are feeling that you are not able to do that. ………Yeah, it does feel that you are going to teeter off the edge”

M: “I suppose that the only way to be a good tight rope walker is to…..”

A: “Have really good balance”

(Interview 8).

In a nutshell......

• Partnership between GCU + CELCIS – funded by SSSC.

• Aim: explore perspectives of NQSWs related to their

preparedness to enter professional social work practice, and their experiences of post-qualifying support and learning.

• Why? SSSC are currently reviewing the social work degree and forming new learning strategy for Scotland.

• Last study of this kind in Scotland by Peter Marsh & John

Triseliotis in 1996.

NQSW Study in Scotland

What are we exploring?

• Levels of perceived confidence• Levels of perceived resilience• Levels of perceived competence

• Do NQSWs have the necessary skills to manage complex caseloads?• Are NQSWs adequately supported by agencies and first-line managers?• Are NQSWs getting enough opportunities to develop skills, knowledge and

practice?

Study Design

• Mixed methods

Stage 1: • Online questionnaire distributed to 572 NQSWs in Scotland

(17 ‘undeliverable’) – so 555 total (Feb – March, 2014).

Stage 2:• Focus groups: Aberdeen, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Perth (March

2014).

University Experience• 80% felt that university prepared NQSWs for ‘reality of

practice’• 86% felt prepared for complex decision-making.• 80% felt that university prepared NQSW’s to be resilient

practitioners. • 70% felt prepared to do assessments and write reports.• 87% felt prepared to deliver ‘outcome-based’ services.• 68% felt that university prepared them to understand the

‘integration agenda’.• 82% felt prepared as ‘research-minded’ practitioners.• 94.2% felt prepared for dealing with ethical / value dilemmas.

Employment Experience• Only 40% say that workload is protected.• Most give 6-12 months as period of protection.• Shadowing and learning from other social workers emerges more strongly

than support from managers.• Experiences of training and development are mixed – no consistency.• Majority of NQSW’s feel confident or very confident across all National

Occupational Standards for Social Work.• 66% felt induction was either satisfactory (33.6%), not very good (20.1%)

or poor (11.9%).• Half would rate formal supervision between satisfactory and poor. • Majority (55%) have satisfactory, not very good or poor opportunities to

reflect on practice during formal supervision (most say discussions are on caseload management and allocation).

Some comments from NQSW’s on formal supervision:

‘More focus on my learning and understanding as a NQSW, due to my presentation as a capable and competent worker, there can be an assumption that I have the relevant experience/skills/knowledge.’

‘An opportunity for reflection would be beneficial but it is not a safe environment to do so. There is a fear of being belittled if I express my views and I do not feel that my discussions are confidential. There are also too many interruptions from the telephone and senior responding to emails and eating.’

‘I would like for supervision to be less focused on 'ticking boxes' and more about giving me the time to reflect on the work I have and am doing.’

‘for it to happen’

Follow up

martin.kettle2@gcu.ac.uk

@MartinK55

scott.grant@gcu.ac.uk

@scottleegrant